Never
Too Young for UCSDCampus Offers Child Care for 3- to 12-Month-Olds

By Ioana Patringenaru | September 25, 2006

“Dylan,” “Ammon,” “Adrian,” “Alex,” “Alexandra” and “Nicolas.” The names were written in colorful letters on a white board above a small play area. Nearby, six little plastic chairs huddled together, waiting for someone to use them. In the room next door, six little cribs were neatly tucked in against the walls.

Maura Bascom test-drives some of the toys for ECEC's new infant child care program. Her mother, Anna Bascom, is a lead teacher at the center.

During its Aug. 31 Open House, the Early Childhood Education Center geared up to welcome the first six “students” in its infant child care program, which opened Sept. 5. They will join 204 children who already are enrolled in the center’s day care, preschool and kindergarten programs. Some of the lucky six had been on a waiting list before they were born, said ECEC director Kathryn Owen. They were selected based on the center’s waiting-list guidelines, which give priority to students, then siblings, then faculty and staff, she said.

The Adrian on the white board was Tonia Luo’s 5-month-old son. His older sister, Carina, now age 4, has been at ECEC since she was 15 months old. Two of Carina’s former teachers will take care of Adrian, said Luo, who works in the Programs Abroad Office at the International Center. “It gives me a comfort level to have my baby here,” she said.

Carina Luo signs the alphabet song with Chancellor Marye Anne Fox.

During the Open House, Carina got to sing the ABC song with Chancellor Marye Anne Fox, who attended the event with Vice Chancellor Steven Relyea and Assistant Vice Chancellor Gary Matthews. Nicolas Schilling, one of Adrian’s future classmates, got to spend a few minutes in the chancellor’s arms, before she handed him back to his mother, Doris Schilling. Schilling, a third-year medical student, said she won’t get to spend much time with Nicolas once she starts her hospital rotations. A child care program located on campus will allow her to visit her son during her lunch breaks, she said.

The new program will serve 3- to 12-month-olds, Owen said. Two teachers who hold state permits and one assistant teacher with a nurse’s aid certificate will take care of the little ones. Owen also recently underwent intensive training in infant care giving. Her office has an observation window with a view of the babies’ cribs.

A renovation of the center’s office area created the space for the new program. Several factors limited its size. One was licensing requirements that include 30 square feet per infant for play areas and a separate napping room, Owen said. Another was health concerns. A class size of eight children or less reduces the risk of respiratory infections, Owen said. A small class size also allows children to get more one-on-one attention, she added. Lack of space means the program won’t expand. But the campus plans to open a second child care center when funding becomes available, Owen said.